Means for breaking down carcasses

ABSTRACT

Means for braking down carcasses such as sheep and pigs comprising a pair of endless belt for conveying the carcass legs uppermost to a splitting saw for cutting along the backbone of the carcass, means for holding the split carcass as it moves along, and a saw for cutting the carcass laterally, the positions of the lateral cuts being predetermined (i) by an operator viewing the carcass through a video system and indicating the position by a pointer, the information being stored in a microprocessor which controls the relative position of the saw and the carcass or (ii) by an algorithm stored in the microprocessor.

This invention relates to improved means for breaking down carcassessuch of those of sheep and pigs.

In the past it has been the practice to split carcasses into two halvesusing a band saw or the like and then break each half down into primarypieces by manual butchering. The provision of automatic means to achievethis result has not been considered practical because of variation inthe dimensions of the individual carcasses and the difficulties inaccurately positioning the carcass and holding it while cutting takesplace.

The object of the present invention is to provide means forautomatically breaking down carcasses into primary pieces.

In one form the invention resides in means for breaking down carcassescomprising means for conveying a carcass past a viewing station toenable the operator to select the position of the cuts required to breakthe carcass into primary pieces, means for recording the selectedpositions and feeding them to a microprocessing unit, means forsplitting the carcass in half along the back bone, means for cutting thecarcass laterally with respect to the back bone and means activated andcontrolled by the microprocessor unit for moving the cutting meansrelative to the carcass to bring the carcass and/or the cutting means tothe required position to the effect the transverse cuts.

The invention will be better understood by reference to the followingdescription of one specific embodiment thereof shown in the accompanyingdrawings wherein:

FIG. 1 shows the overall layout of the plant the top half being inelevation and the lower half in plan;

FIG. 2 shows the sizing of the carcass and recording of the data on thecomputer which is remotely located;

FIG. 3 is an elevation of the carcass carrier and band saw for splittingthe carcass into two havles;

FIG. 4 is an end elevation of stabilising means to keep the two halvesof the carcass together after splitting;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation corresponding to FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a plan of an upper carriage supporting a series of supportingand holding devices positioned to allow lateral cuts of the carcass;

FIG. 7 is a plan of the lower portion of the unit on which the uppercarriage of FIG. 6 (shown in light lines) is supported;

FIG. 8 is a sectional elevation of the lower portion of FIG. 7, themovable upper carriage of FIG. 6 and one supporting and holding devicefor gripping the carcass;

FIG. 9 is a rear elevation of a tiltable band saw positioned at one sideof the unit;

FIG. 10 is a side elevation of the band saw;

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary elevation of the band saw base; and

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing the functional layout of the unit.

As shown in the drawings the carcasses to be treated or broken down arecarried on a conventional conveyor 21 to the unit and as they do so theyare viewed by means of a television camera 22 and the image shown in avideo screen 23. The operator activates a pointer 24 to indicate thepositions where the lateral cuts are to be made to break the carcassdown into its primary pieces the image of the pointer appearing on thescreen 23.

The pointer 24 is coupled to a length transducer such as a potentiometer24a which acts to measure the distance travelled by the pointer and thisinformation is fed to the microprocessor on request. The information asto the positions is stored by the microprocessor MP which activates andcontrols the operation of the various components as hereinafterdescribed.

In an alternative arrangement not shown in the drawings the image of acarcass of the species of animal being processed recorded in a visionsystem such as a video camera is interpreted by an algorithm stored inthe memory of the microprocessor. The position of lateral cuts to bemade in the carcass is decided by the algorithm rather than by a humanoperator thus further reducing the labour required.

The carcass is removed either manually or through a dismount system fromthe conveyor 21 and placed with legs projecting upwardly and thehindquarters leading between a pair of inclined endless belts 25 and 26which feed it towards an endless band saw 27 which cuts the carcass intotwo halves along the back bone. The band saw 27 is activated by asensing member 28 carried on an arm 29 so that movement of the arm onthe approach of the carcass activates a microswitch which activates theentire control sequence through the microprocessor. The sensing member28 also acts to keep the flaps of the carcass apart and clear of theband saw during the splitting operation. As the carcass emerges frombetween the belts 25, 26 it supported on support 30 and is stabilised bythe stabilising members 31 as shown in FIG. 4 to prevent the two halvesfalling apart. The ends of the member 31 bearing against the carcass arefitted with rollers 31a.

If desired the band saw 27 may be replaced by the two band saws spacedapart to cut on either side of the backbone so that the backbone isremoved during the splitting of the carcass.

In an alternative arrangement not shown in the drawings the splitting ofthe carcass may be achieved using a circular saw rather than a band saw.The microprocessor may be used to position the circular saw in relationto the carcass so that it cuts through the backbone only, leaving theskin covering the backbone intact. This is achieved by mounting aposition transducer just prior to the circular saw and located so as tocontact the surface of the carcass to measure the position of the skin.This information is fed to the microprocessor to enable it to correctlyposition the saw. This arrangement is particularly suitable in theprocessing of pigs when it is intended to remove the skin for tanning asit maintains a larger unbroken skin surface.

Aligned with the support 30 is a series of mobile supports 32 eachprovided with a pair of air operated clamps 33. The supports 32 are eachmounted to travel on one pair of two pairs of rails 34 which are joinedby transverse members 35 to form an upper carriage. The members 35 areprovided with rollers 36 adapted to run in tracks 37. Each of thesupports 32 are linked together by a flexible link 32 whilst the firstof the supports is connected to an air cylinder 39. The supports are allbunched together at the end of the support 30 to receive the carcass.After the hindquarters of the carcass has moved beyond the support 30the first of the supports is operated with the clamps 33 moving upwardlyto engage the carcass. The cylinder moves the first support 32 away fromthe support 30 with the clamps 33 of the remaining supports 32successively engaging the carcass. The clamps 33 are located so thatthey are clear of the established laterally cutting positions. The uppercarriage with the carcass held firmly by the clamps 33 is then advancedthrough the action of air cylinder 39a past a band saw 38 which can belowered to make the required lateral cuts at the position dictated bythe microprocessor.

The saw 38 is pivotally mounted on a shaft 41 supported in bearing 42 towhich are attached a counterweight 43 through arms 44. The assembly ispivotally mounted on a transverse horizontal shaft 45 on top of asupporting pillar 40 so that the saw can be rotated from a verticalposition to an angled position as is shown in FIG. 9 of the drawings. Acounterweight 46 is fixed to the shaft 45 as shown in FIG. 10. Therotation of the saw to the cutting position is effected through aircylinders 47 (see FIG. 10). The saw is tilted to the required angle bymeans of an air motor 48 driving a lead screw 49. After the lateral cutshave made the pieces fall to each side of the unit and are carried awayfor packing or further processing.

Whilst the invention has been described with particular reference to anumber of specific embodiments it is not limited thereto. For examplethe saw to make the lateral cuts may be positioned immediately adjacentthe band saw 27 and the operation of the belts 25, 26 controlled toadvance the carcass to the required lateral cutting position in astepping motion. This eliminates the need for supports 32 and theassociated equipment.

The microprocessor may be used for the collection of data. For exampleby fitting weighing units at appropriate locations and feeding theinformation therefrom into the microprocessor it is possible to recordthe weight of carcasses processed and the weight of the different cutsof the carcass produced.

The claims defining the invention are as follows:
 1. Means for breakingdown carcasses comprising means for conveying a carcass past a viewingstation to enable the operator to select the position of the cutsrequired to break the carcass into primary pieces, means for recordingthe selected positions and feeding them to a microprocessing unit, meansfor splitting the carcass in half along the back bone, means forretaining the halves of the split carcass in their original positionrelative to each other during subsequent cutting operations, means forcutting the held and split carcass halves laterally with respect to theback bone, and means activated and controlled by the microprocessor unitfor moving the cutting means relative to the carcass to bring thecarcass and the cutting means to the required relative positions toeffect the transverse cuts.
 2. Means for breaking down carcasses asclaimed in claim 1 wherein the view of the carcass provided by theviewing station is interpreted by an algorithm stored in themicroprocessor to determine the position of the lateral cuts.
 3. Meansfor breaking down carcasses as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means forsplitting the carcass comprising a pair of inclined endless belts forconveying the carcass with the feet projecting upwardly and a sawlocated adjacent the forward end of the endless belts.
 4. Means forbreaking down carcasses as claimed in claim 3 wherein a sensing memberis positioned so that it is activated on the approach of the carcass toinitiate operation of the saw and the microprocessor.
 5. Means forbreaking down carcasses as claimed in claim 1 wherein the means forretaining the split carcass halves comprise stabilizing means to clampand hold the two halves of the carcass located ahead of the splittingmeans upon a support.
 6. Means for breaking down carcasses as claimed inclaim 2 wherein the means for cutting the carcass laterally comprises aband saw positioned adjacent the line of travel of the split carcass andsupported for pivotal movement about a horizontal axis parallel to theline of travel of the split carcass and about a horizontal axistransverse to the line of travel of the split carcass.
 7. Means forbreaking down carcasses as claimed in claim 3 wherein the saw comprisesa circular saw.
 8. Means for breaking down carcasses as claimed in claim7 wherein the microprocessor positions the saw in response to signalsfed to the microprocessor from a position transducer located slightly tothe rear of the saw.
 9. Means for breaking down carcasses as claimed inclaim 2 wherein the means for splitting the carcass comprising a pair ofinclined endless belts for conveying the carcass with the feetprojecting upwardly and an endless band saw located adjacent the forwardend of the endless belts.
 10. Means for breaking down carcasses asclaimed in claim 9 wherein a sensing member is positioned so that it isactivated on the approach of the carcass to initiate operation of theband saw and the microprocessor.
 11. Means for breaking down carcassesas claimed in claim 2 wherein the means for retaining the split carcasshalves comprise stabilizing means to clamp and hold the two halves ofthe carcass located ahead of the splitting means upon a support. 12.Means for breaking down carcasses as claimed in claim 3 wherein thestabilizing means to clamp and hold the two halves of the carcasslocated ahead of the splitting means upon a support.
 13. Means forbreaking down carcasses as claimed in claim 9 wherein the means forretaining the split carcass halves comprise stabilizing means to clampand hold the two halves of the carcass located ahead of the splittingmeans upon a support.
 14. Means for breaking down carcasses as claimedin claim 4 wherein stabilizing means to clamp and hold the two halves ofthe carcass located ahead of the splitting means upon a support. 15.Means for breaking down carcasses as claimed in claim 10 wherein themeans for retaining the split carcass halves comprise stabilizing meansto clamp and hold the two halves of the carcass located ahead of thesplitting means upon a support.
 16. Means for breaking down carcasses asclaimed in claim 2 wherein the means for splitting the carcass comprisesa circular saw.
 17. Means for breaking down carcasses as claimed inclaim 15 wherein the microprocessor positions the saw in response tosignals fed to the microprocessor from a position transducer locatedslightly to the rear of the saw.
 18. Means for breaking down carcassesas claimed in claim 16 wherein the position transducer is located tocontact the surface of the carcass to measure the position of the skinand the saw is controlled to cut the backbone and not the skin. 19.Means for breaking down carcasses as claimed in claim 3 wherein the sawcomprises a band saw.